Ice is a defining factor in Ittoqqortoormiit, a village of just over 350 on the eastern coast of Greenland. But the ice is changing, as it is across the Arctic regions. Erik Pedersen, who runs the local meteorological station, has recorded steadily increasing temperatures, which directly impact the ice. This change is making life more dangerous, with many depending on subsistence hunting or fishing.

It is not only the inhabitants of Ittoqqortoormiit that are affected by the rising temperatures. Since 2007, the number of polar bears entering Ittoqqortoormiit has doubled; the warming temperatures and shrinking sea ice has made hunting more challenging for polar bears, forcing them ever closer to Ittoqqortoormiit.

In 2015, a polar bear patrol was launched to protect the lives of those threatened by the polar bears and to reduce the instances of humans killing bears in self-defence. Residents report polar bears sleeping near their homes as they try to send children off to school in the morning, and class outings can be dangerous. The patrol responds to sightings and checks the village for bears each morning before residents head out for school and work, preventing more than 75 bears from entering the village since patrols began. These efforts help deter the bears from coming back; bears who return again and again are more likely to be killed.